the magnus archives 163

[kindkit]

Some thoughts on TMA 163, "In the Trenches," under the cut.

First things first: oh, Jon. Oh, Martin, with your boundaries and your scaredness and your courage. *hugs them both a lot*

Also, damn, that was intense.

I've been wondering how S5 would be structured, and this episode seems to answer that for the first half. We'll have Jon and Martin's journey, going through one Fear per episode. I expect there'll be detours and complications to keep things from getting stale. Either that, or Jonny will deliberately blow up the expectations he's just created with something completely wild.

I continue to worry/wonder about the tape recorders, for reasons I've mentioned in previous posts. (Namely, what are they and why are they, now that the Fears have direct access to the world?)

The ringing phone adds a new element of uncertainty and worry. Eventually, I suppose, Martin or Jon will answer it. (We all know Jon would find it very, very hard to ignore. There might be knowledge on the other end of the line.)

The thing is, the phone, plus the way the logic of the trenches nightmare echoed that of Jon's coma dreams back in 120, plus the utter weirdness of the cabin stuff, is making me wonder. Did the world really end/change, or did nothing change except the inside of Jon's and Martin's heads? Could this be the equivalent of another coma dream? I do think Martin is really there and not just a figment of Jon's imagination, because we've seen him on his own when Jon isn't nearby to perceive him. But that doesn't mean the world they're in is real; at this point, I think it's reasonable to assume that Jon and Martin are mystically linked, and one's nightmares could drag the other in. (BTW, by "mystically linked" I don't mean Destined True Love, but rather all the things they've done that have created bonds and led them to become one another's anchors. One of the things I like about this pairing is how very much it isn't destined true love. Our boys got there through hard work and painful experiences and a bit of dumb luck.)

I don't think this scenario is likely to be true, because it would be a pretty obvious fake-out and one that, if handled badly, would come across as cheap. (I would, however, trust Jonny to handle it well.) But on the other hand, the earlier coma happened, in part, because Jon stubbornly refused to make an impossible choice. What if, right now, he's stubbornly stopping a door from opening all the way? What if the Fears can't get farther into our world than Jon's mind, and by extension Martin's?

Ringing phones are a pretty classic trope for "this character is trapped in a dream and needs to wake up." Just saying. (Though if my speculation is right, Jon and Martin shouldn't wake up. Waking up might really let the Fears loose into the world.)


Also, on a minor point, did Martin just literally put his fingers in his ears, or did he "go away" into the Lonely? If he can still do that, I don't like it one bit.

Comments

[rydra_wong]

Also, on a minor point, did Martin just literally put his fingers in his ears, or did he "go away" into the Lonely? If he can still do that, I don't like it one bit.

On the first listen, I too thought he maybe "went away" and was Concerned; second listen I think no, he probably did just put his fingers in his ears. No Lukas-style phasing noises.

And I think Jon would probably be more alarmed if Martin flat-out vanished. Though given that they're in Metaphor Nightmare World anyway he might be more blase about minor violations of physical reality.

[kindkit]

Yeah, that makes sense.

Part of the reason I was wondering if Martin still has some connection to the Lonely is because, in "A Cosy Cabin," Jon says something about himself and Martin not always being able to hear each other: "Your voice does not echo when you call to them. And they find they sometimes cannot hear it." Though that could just be the cabin.

[rydra_wong]

We are definitely not the only people to have initially read it as Martin Lonely-ing out of there. And it will be interesting to see if he does still have Lonely powers/associations.

Canon seems to indicate that you don't get to just sever your tie to a Power without drastic action (like, say gouging your eyes out).

OTOH, we are now in nightmare hellscape world and all the rules have changed.

[rydra_wong]

First things first: oh, Jon. Oh, Martin, with your boundaries and your scaredness and your courage. *hugs them both a lot*

All of these things:

https://dathen.tumblr.com/post/615571497402220544/every-episode-gives-me-something-new-to-have
https://archivisims.tumblr.com/post/615568142254686208
https://blqckwoods.tumblr.com/post/615569103324889088/blqckwoods-ok-now-that-ive-gathered-my-thoughts

[kindkit]

Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhh, I am so scared for Martin all of them.

[kindkit]

Cool, thanks. I found blqckwoods' post especially insightful for noting that Jon has also set boundaries after Martin pushed too hard. It's easy to think that Martin is the only vulnerable one, but it's really not true. The more forceful Martin that emerged from the Lonely could have worked really toxically on Jon's guilt and grief, if he hadn't respected those boundaries.